Ullr (ooh-ler) the Norse God of winter will be honored in this community event hosted by the Diamond Peak Ski Team. Activities to include; Opening ceremonies, Torchlight Parade, Bonfire Kickoff with marshmallows and hot chocolate, fun events for the entire family, BBQ, Live Music, Dancing, dinner and auction. Stay tuned for the community event of the season.

Ullr_Fest_Flyer

Ullr Fest Donation Form

Read this informative article from the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza that describes Incline High School’s Winter Sports Academy, a program which allows students to couple in-classroom study with online learning to provide flexibility for a serious athlete’s training schedule.

Big Jump

Diamond Peak sent five athletes and a coach to the Far West Speed Camp held at Mammoth.

They were: Julia Bjorkman, Lila Lapanja, Remi Wolf, Lauren Keller, Ian Reeves, and J3 Coach Vojko.

With approximately 37 participants from the Far West attending the camp, Diamond Peak sending 5 racers is a good representation and speaks well of the development here.

Lauren

The purpose of the Camp is to teach and develop speed techniques and jump skills for future Downhill and Super G events.

Despite being held on some difficult and rapidly changing snow conditions the four day camp went well. The afternoon thunder storms, rain and hail just added a little spice to it.

The J3’s polished their jump skills and the J4’s had their first taste of going off jumps.

They learned quickly that going off jumps is a technique and it must be practiced and worked at to be successful.

Ian

The Speed Camp is a great opportunity for the racers to meet and spend time with their peers around the Far West and make new friendships that will last a long time.

Diamond Peak’s J3 Ski Team wrapped up their 2008-9 technical season with strong results at the Far West Championships featuring two giant slaloms at Sugar Bowl, April 3 and 4, followed by the Emily Clothier Memorial slaloms at Heavenly, April 5 and 6.

First-year stand-out Ty Sprock showed his technical strength with an outstanding performance during the weekend, winning the gold in the slalom finale at Heavenly. Making his mark moving into next season, Sprock also stood out from his competition by securing a J3 silver and 4th in giant slalom and a podium silver day-one of slalom.

Capping a stellar season, Lila Lapanja won all four J3 titles in convincing fashion and was in the hunt for the overall at each competition, going 4-3-4-2 against all J2 through mid-racers (20 years and older). Teammate Julia Bjorkman had her first J3 podium finish, winning bronze in slalom.

J3s Sarah Wright and Kerrie Tonking of Diamond Peak also raced well, setting up their points for solid solid start positions going into the 2009-10 season. The team heads south now to Mammoth for the six final races of the season at the Far West Speed Championships featuring downhill, super-G and one giant slalom. For complete results, please visit www.fwskiing.org.

For information on the Emily Clothier Memorial Scholarship Fund, please visit www.emilyclothier.org.

Coach Vojko and his J3 girls
Heavenly Valley, 4/6/09